Viewsonic PJD6383S Projector – Physical Tour

Posted on July 23, 2013 By Mike Rollett

Viewsonic PJD6383S Appearance

Unlike many multimedia projectors that come in a basic white case, the Viewsonic PJD6383S has a sharp-looking gloss black case. The PJD6383S has its lens offset to the right side of the projector when facing it. The convex lens sticks out from the front of the projector because the PJD6383S does not project straight ahead, but rather upward diagonally from the projector, thus allowing it to be placed close to the screen. The protruding lens is somewhat more susceptible to accidental damage, so Viewsonic provides a sturdy lens cap that is tethered to the projector. The lens is surrounded by a focus ring. To the right of the lens is an IR receiving eye and to the left, a hot air exhaust port. With no zooming or lens shift ability (typical of short throw projectors), the PJD6383S is completely dependent on placement to align its image with a screen. To that end, there is a single height adjustable foot in the center front of the projector and two adjustable height feet in the rear corners for adjusting the height and leveling the projector.

On top of the projector is the lamp cover. The cover is secured by screws on the top edges of the projector. This allows for easy removal/replacement of the lamp even if the projector is ceiling-mounted. Behind that, in the rear left corner, is a control panel including indicators for power, lamp status and temperature (if overheating). There are buttons for Power, Keystone correction (which also serve as menu navigation Up/Down buttons), Menu, Mode/Enter and Auto (to match picture timing to source). The Left/Right menu navigation buttons also function as Blank and Panel Key lock respectively. A second IR receiving eye is also part of the panel.

On the right side (facing the front of the projector), is a built-in speaker followed by an air intake vent toward the rear. There is another vent on the left side of the projector.

Moving to the rear panel, there is a full array of inputs, including an HDMI input. Starting at the top left, there is a USB Type B jack (for remote mouse functions), a LAN jack for a network connection, an RS-232C input for computer control of the projector, and an HDMI input. These are followed by a VGA monitor output, two VGA computer inputs, S-video and composite video inputs two 1/8” audio input jacks and one audio output jack. Along the bottom of the rear panel is the power cord jack, a security lock bar and a Kensington lock.

Viewsonic PJD6383S Setup and Menus

Short throw projectors usually take more time to set up, primarily because the projector has to be positioned at both the correct height and distance from the screen (as there is no ability to manually zoom or shift the lens). The PJD6383S is no exception in this regard, but it does have individual height adjustment at the rear corners (along with the usual single front adjustment) which makes the task a bit easier. There is also the usual digital keystone adjustment capability to help square the image when the projector is sitting on an uneven surface. Also, for the classroom, the PJD6383S would be a good candidate for ceiling mounting, as it can be mounted very close to the screen, so setup time would not be an issue.

Once it’s positioned, bringing up the menu, the user can select the desired display mode and make the usual adjustments (contrast, brightness, color and tint) to the picture. There is also a choice of four different color temperatures. While the Viewsonic PJD6383S does not offer grayscale calibration adjustments, it does offer full color management control. This means that each of the primary (red, green, blue) and secondary (cyan, magenta, yellow) colors can be adjusted for accuracy. This level of control is unusual for multimedia projectors, especially in this price range. While this is not something that most users will be able to use properly (as it requires special calibration tools), these controls may come in handy to tone down the excessive green or blue that appear in whites when using the brightest mode.

There are a few picture modes that are tailored to specific uses. ViewMatch switches between high brightness performance and accurate color performance based on the source information. Dynamic PC and Dynamic Movie start with the standard PC and Movie modes, but make adjustments in image quality as determined by the source material. Overall, the PJD6383S gives the user plenty of options to optimize the display to each particular type of presentation.

Viewsonic PJD6383S Menu Slideshow

Color management Menu

Picture Menu

Viewsonic PJD6383S Remote Control

The PJD6383S’s remote control is a small, black remote with mostly black buttons and white lettering. The Power, Laser pointer, Menu and Dynamic Eco buttons are colored red, orange, blue and blue respectively to make them stand out. All of the buttons are appropriately grouped and cover all the important functions without accessing them through the menu.

In addition to the usual menu and navigation buttons, there are buttons to directly access the two computer inputs, mouse functions, image auto-sync, blank and freeze, AV mute, timer, lock, digital zoom and keystone correction. There are also buttons to mute and control the volume of the projector’s 10-watt built-in speaker.

The buttons are not backlit or even glow-in-the-dark, but that is standard for multimedia projectors, where backlighting can often be distracting.

Current dealer prices for Viewsonic PJD6383s

The ViewSonic PJD6383s is an advanced short throw, networkable DLP projector designed for classroom and corporate environments. With its short throw lens, the projector can project a 100" image from less than 4 feet.